Draft-plate for railway-cars.



H. l. WRIGLEY.

DRAFT PLATE FOR RAlLWAY CARS. APPLICATION nuzo SEPT. 23. I914.

Patented Oct. 12, 1915.

HENRY I. WRIGLEY, OF OHICAGO. ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO UNIVERSAL DRAFT GEARATTACHMENT COMPANY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF ILLINOIS.

DRAFT-PLATE FOR RAILWAY-CARS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 12, 1915.

Application filed September 23, 1914. Serial No. 863,111.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that 1', HENRY I. iVnmLnY, acitizen of the United States. and resident of Chicago, county of Cook,and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvementsin Draft-Plates for Railway-Cars, of which the following is aspecification, and which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings,forming a part thereof.

The invention relates to plates adapted to be attached to the sills of arailway car and to serve as means for transmitting thereto draft andbufiing stresses from the coupler.

More specifically it relates to plates of this character whichconstitute in themselves buffing blocks for receiving at their forwardends excessive buffing blows from the coupler horn, and which are alsoprovided with draft shoulders or horns for engaging the inner face ofthe end sill of the car.

In draft plates of this type it is important that the forward endconstituting the bufiing block should bear firmly against the outer faceof the end sill and that the draft horn should bear firmly against theinner face of this sill. Car sills vary in size and are not fitted withexactness and it therefore frequently happens that the draft and buffinghorns of the plate will not fit snugly against the timber. LoosenessOffit may also be developed with service, partly due to the shrinkage ofthe material and partly due to its compression or abrasion.

The object of the present invention is to provide a wedging elementfitting between the draft horn and end sill, and so constructed that itwill automatically adjust itself and secure a tight fit. and willmaintain such fit-automatically as it will advance to take up anylooseness which may develop in the course of service.

An embodiment of the invention is hereinafter described, and isillustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which- -Figure 1 is adetail longitudinal section of a car showing the draft plate partly inelevation and partly in section; Fig. 2 is a detail plan section of thesame; Fig. 3

is a detail section similar to Fig. 1, showing a slightly modified formof car construction; and Fig. 1 is a detail in perspective, and partlyin section, of the draft plate.

The end sill of a car is represented at 10, and one of its center sillsat 11. The draft plate, generally represented by the numeral 1:2, may beof any preferred form of construction as to the arrangement and locationof its draft and buffing shoulders and as to the means for attaching itto the center sill of the car. It projects forwardly, as shown at 13,under and beyond the end sill 10, and is provided with an upstandingbufiing horn 14 for receiving on its forward face '15 the blows from thebuffing horn 16 of the coupler 17, and for hearing with its inner faceagainst the front face of the end sill.

Back of the end sill there is provided an upstanding horn, generallyrepresented by the numeral 18, this horn being located adjacent theinner face of the center sill 11. The forward face of the h0rn 18 isinclined downwardly and forwardly, as shown at 19, and there isinterposed between this face and the sill 10 a wedge-block 20, having arearward inclined face conforming to the inclined face of the horn and aforward vertical face for engaging the sill, this forward face beingpreferably roughened for increasing its frictional engagement. Thewedgeblock will automatically drop into place between the horn and sill,and will tend to work down under the influence of the vibration orweaving of the car frame and thus firmly clamp the sill between the twodraft arm horns.

The important part of the invention consists in the means for connectingthe wedgeblock with the draft horn. To this end the horn is providedwith lateral flanges 21, 22, projecting in opposite directions from itsweb 23. The wedge-block 20 is provided with a pair of rearwardlyextending lugs 24, 25, which embrace the front end of the horn,extending backwardly beyond its flanges 21, '22, and each being providedwith an instanding boss 26 which hooks around or under the horn flangewith which it cooperates. To facilitate assembling, oneof the flanges,as 21, is recessed at its rearward end, as shown at 27, to permit theboss 26 to enter, and the other flange, 22, recedes at its rearward end,as shown at 28, for the same purpose. The block 20 is first placed overthe horn in the dotted lines position of Fig. 1, and then pushedforwardly and downwardly into place. By a blow of a hammer 7 upon therearward end of the flange 22,

the point at which it angles inwardly, it is bent down, as indicated at29. (Fig. 1),

thereby preventing accidental or intentional removal of the block.

' The bufling horn 1% extends laterally to the center line of draft, andis provided with an upstanding flange 30 adapted to bear against and beriveted to the corresponding flange of the companion arm, therebyproviding greater rigidity of the bufiing element.

It is the practice with some car builders to extend the endsheathing 31of the car downwardly over the front face of the end sill, as shown inFig. 3. lVhen this construction is followed, the sheathing interposedbetween the bufling horn and the sill proper becomes in effect a part ofthe sill front face of the horn being inclined and provided with lateralflanges, a wedge-block applied, to such inclined face and having lugshooking around the flanges.

2. A draft plate having a draft horn, the front face of which isinclined and provided with lateral flanges, a wedging block applied tosuch inclined face and having lugs hooking around the flanges, one ofsuch flanges being recessed to permit the entrance of one of the lugs.

3. A draft plate having a draft horn the frontface of which is inclinedand provided with lateral flanges, a wedging block applied to suchinclined face and having lugs hooking around the flanges, one of suchflanges having a shouldered end adapted to be bent down to prevent thedisengagement of the lug.

- HENRY I. VVRIGLEY.

\Vitnesses:

E. M. KLA'roHER. R. RINGLE.

